Comparison

Simple Notes vs RecToGo

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Simple Notes

This app offers a clean and efficient way to organize your thoughts and ideas. Easily add images, organize notes into colored folders, and secure your entries with a passcode. Customize the look with various themes and fonts, and back up your data to iCloud.

Highlights
  • Add photos to notes
  • Organize with colored folders
  • Calendar view for notes
  • Passcode and biometric lock
  • Customizable themes and fonts
  • iCloud backup and sync
  • Smart search with tags
Features
Read full description

Simple Notes is an easy-to-use notes app that leaves out the extras, so writing, organizing, and finding notes stay simple. Notes go into color-coded folders, and you can find them using the calendar or photo album. No account or setup is required, and the app works offline. Core features are free. Keep everything in one place, from class notes and work memos to a diary or baby journal. [Features] ■ Add Photos to Notes - Attach images to any note - Insert pictures from your photo library, or take a photo on the spot ■ Folder Organization - Create folders to keep your notes organized - Choose from 24 folder colors to tell categories apart at a glance ■ Calendar View - View notes by date using the built-in calendar - Tap any date to see notes for that date — perfect for locating past entries ■ Photo Album - Browse all images added to notes in one place - Tap a photo to jump to its note ■ Home Screen & Lock Screen Widgets - Keep a note on your Home Screen like a sticky note — no need to open the app - Lock Screen widgets let you see a note without unlocking your iPhone - Choose which note to display and its text size *Widgets are part of the Premium Service* ■ Sort Notes & Bullet Lists - Sort by note date, date edited, date created, or title, ascending or descending - Bullet lists make it easy to write shopping and packing lists ■ Passcode Lock - Protect your notes with a passcode - Supports Face ID and Touch ID for quick and secure access ■ Font Styles - Choose from 12 font styles - Choose a playful, elegant, or professional look for your notes ■ Themes and App Icons - Pick from 23 theme colors and matching app icons - Customize the look of the app and even the Home Screen icon ■ Full-Note Image & PDF - Turn an entire note, even a long one with photos, into a single image to share - Export notes as PDFs for work or school ■ Data Backup & Export - Back up your notes to iCloud or export them to your computer - Hand exported notes to AI apps for summaries, or save them to Notion or Google Drive - Export formats: HTML (for Windows), RTFD (for Mac, keeps images), PDF, and TXT *Data export and iCloud backup are part of the Premium Service; notes are also included in your iPhone’s device backup* ■ iCloud Sync - Use iCloud to sync notes across your iPhone and iPad (Premium Service) - Restore your notes on a new device if yours is lost or broken ■ Smart Search - Use the built-in search to quickly find notes - Add text tags like “#Important” to make key notes easier to locate ■ Character Count - Check the character count as you write reports, essays, or fiction - Each note can hold up to 100,000 characters ■ Text Display Settings - Adjust text size, contrast, and line spacing - Ideal if you prefer larger text or need better readability - Dark Mode is supported for nighttime use ■ Remove Ads - The Premium Service hides all ads - Enjoy a clean, distraction-free screen for your notes [Great For] - Students: class and lecture notes with photos, one folder per course — export notes as PDF or text and hand them to AI apps for exam prep - Parents: a baby journal with photos, growth records, and family memos in folders - Work: meeting notes, ideas, and memos in one place — tap the mic on the iOS keyboard to dictate notes, handy for transcripts and meeting minutes - Writers: novels, blog drafts, and reports — live character count and PDF sharing [Good to Know] - Works on iPhone and iPad (iOS/iPadOS 14 or later) - Works offline — create and view notes even in Airplane Mode - No handwriting inside notes or audio recording (write on exported images and PDFs) [Help & Contact] - For help, go to “Help / FAQ” in the app settings - If you still have questions, tap “Contact Us” on the help screen - For faster support, contact us through the app rather than leaving an App Store review 【Terms of Service】 https://komorebi-studio.com/tos_en.html 【Privacy Policy】 https://komorebi-studio.com/policyredirect.html

About

RecToGo

Features
Read full description

RecToGo is a voice recording app that makes it easy to save your recordings to the cloud. Upload to Google Drive or iCloud with one tap to keep your important audio safe. Record meetings, lectures, and voice memos, and back them up instantly. 【Key Features】 ■ One-Tap Cloud Backup - One-tap upload to Google Drive (choose your destination folder) - One-tap upload to iCloud Drive - Back up to the cloud right after recording - Your audio is saved only to your own account, kept safe ■ Powerful Recording Management - Real-time waveform display while you record - Markers to flag important moments and jump back to them later - Easily play, delete, and rename your recordings - Auto-rename after recording for tidy file organization - Recording timeout to stop automatically after a set duration - Multiple formats supported (M4A, WAV, MP3, and more) - Share recordings to other apps ■ Simple & Easy to Use - One tap to start recording - Clean, intuitive interface - Background recording, so you can keep recording while you work - Check and control recording from the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island (iPhone 14 Pro and later) - Quick access from the Home Screen widget - Available in English and Japanese 【Free to Use & RecToGo Pro】 RecToGo is free to use. Free plan - Up to 5 cloud uploads per week - One marker per recording - Fixed recording timeout duration RecToGo Pro (one-time purchase) - Unlimited cloud uploads - Add multiple markers to a single recording - Set your own recording timeout duration - Get more out of every recording with Pro RecToGo Pro is a one-time purchase (not a subscription). The price is billed to your Apple ID at confirmation, and Restore Purchases is supported. 【Perfect For】 - Meeting and business discussion minutes - University lectures and seminars - Quick voice memos for ideas - Interviews and podcast recording - Language learning: pronunciation and shadowing practice - Logging your music practice sessions 【Privacy & Security】 - Recording data is never sent to the developer's servers - Uploads go only to your own Google Drive or iCloud account - Only the minimum permissions are requested (microphone, cloud storage) - A detailed privacy policy is published Record your important audio easily and securely with RecToGo.

Screenshots

Simple Notes4 screens
RecToGo4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: RecToGo at monthly against Simple Notes's every 3 months. Simple Notes's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Simple Notes sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and RecToGo sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Simple Notes ships an update every 3 months, RecToGo monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Simple Notes versus RecToGo: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSimple NotesRecToGo
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (790 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews87.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings790 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsMonthly — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size216 MB7 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperKomorebi Inc.SHOHEI MORIYA

Bugs and requests

Simple Notes

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • No local PC backup and restore feature
  • UI looks outdated and childish

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add ability to pin notes at the top of a folder
  • Implement iCloud sync between devices
  • Introduce more text formatting options (bold, italics, underline, etc.)
  • Allow changing folder colors

RecToGo

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Simple Notes

Subscriptions2
  • Premium (Monthly)$4.991 Month
  • Premium (Annual)7 Days trial$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Premium Service$39.99
1 purchases

RecToGo

One-time1
  • RecToGo Pro$4.99

Questions

Is Simple Notes free?
Simple Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is RecToGo free?
RecToGo is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Simple Notes or RecToGo have ads?
Both Simple Notes and RecToGo show ads.
Which is updated more often, Simple Notes or RecToGo?
Simple Notes ships an update every 3 months, and RecToGo monthly. Most recently, Simple Notes was updated on October 24, 2026 and RecToGo on October 15, 2026.

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